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I've got the best amp in the world! (but I never get to play it)


gjones
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The type of gig I do means that I very rarely get the chance to use my main amp. With the smaller gigs I take my little 150 watt Ashdown combo and for larger gigs I use whatever they have for onstage monitoring (usually the foldback is enough for that purpose and I end up turning the on-stage amp down).
There's so many great amps out there capable of pumping out megawatts of juicy bass goodness but why have a 750 watt amp (like TC have just introduced) when nobody out front will ever hear it - the sound guy will tell you to 'turn that bloody thing down onstage!' so he can D.I. you through the P.A.
I bought my 350 watt Fender TV fifteen Bassman about two years ago and, although Ive done 50 gigs since then, I've used it at about 4 of them. It sounds great but nobody ever gets the chance to hear it in it's full glory turned up LOUD. I know of a few bass players on this forum who turn up with a Sansamp or a POD and just plug straight into the P.A.
I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of those famous 'endorsee' bassplayers do the same. I know Geddy Lee won't be endorsing any amp manufacturers anytime soon (although I've heard he just got a new deal with Hotpoint recently :))

This video illustrates my point. It compares the Ampeg Micro-VR and SVT with 32x10 (yes I said the 32x10) [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPWikFPwYFc&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPWikFPwYFc...feature=related[/url]

I know which one I WANT.................but do I need it?

Edited by gjones
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Why not just take the big amp for the small gigs? You dont have to turn it up to silly levels.

Im one of those "lucky" ones who hardly ever use PA support so i get to choose how i sound out front.

Edited by dave_bass5
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Can't really see the point of bass amps and cabs, they are a pain in the arse getting them to gigs and in and out the van, people want to borrow them at gigs, rehearsal rooms usually provide backline anyway, they are almost never miced on stage, and they are very expensive.

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[quote name='silddx' post='1275614' date='Jun 20 2011, 10:18 AM']Can't really see the point of bass amps and cabs, they are a pain in the arse getting them to gigs and in and out the van, people want to borrow them at gigs, rehearsal rooms usually provide backline anyway, they are almost never miced on stage, and they are very expensive.[/quote]

Well i dont think my band would appreciate me turning without a rig.

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I've got a 900w amp that weighs next to nowt and has a lovely DI. I have two nice cabs that are an easy lift, but I usually only use one. And I quite often get mic'd up.

More importantly, the amp has a volume knob that goes down as well as up.

I'm a while away from going down the Pod + in-ears route.

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[quote name='silddx' post='1275614' date='Jun 20 2011, 10:18 AM']Can't really see the point of bass amps and cabs, they are a pain in the arse getting them to gigs and in and out the van, people want to borrow them at gigs, rehearsal rooms usually provide backline anyway, they are almost never miced on stage, and they are very expensive.[/quote]

Too many reasons to list, consistency, PA support, reliable on-stage monitoring, IMO you can feel a bass amp better than you can monitors, control over where the sound goes instead of relying on a monitor, additional height.

If you're only ever playing venues that are garuanteed to have a good PA, cool, convenience can win. I've been playing loud rock for the best part of a decade and I've never been able to rely on PAs for bass. Either they struggle putting through enough bass to the monitors to compete with drummers or they're only there for vocals/keys. I also (as I said above) found that a bass amp gives much better vibrations, you can actually feel what you're playing rather than through the monitors in a mix with everything else where even if you can clearly hear it, you might not feel the punch.

Case in hand, I played a gig last Thursday in Barnsley, lovely venue and they usually have a decent PA. There was another gig going on run by the same people who took the PA. As a result the PA we had was a mess, bass was distorting and we only had one monitor between the whole band. if I hadn't been using an amp, it would've been awful.

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[quote name='wateroftyne' post='1275636' date='Jun 20 2011, 10:32 AM']I've got a 900w amp that weighs next to nowt and has a lovely DI. I have two nice cabs that are an easy lift, but I usually only use one. And I quite often get mic'd up.[/quote]

I dream of having a 'loud but light' amp and cab. I got my bassman because most bass amps are anonymous black boxes while the TV bassman range are beautiful tweed covered retro designed objects of desire. But they are INCREDIBLY heavy, have one puny handle on top and are frankly a pain in the arse if you I live in a flat up 3 flights of stairs (like I do). The thought of getting a hernia puts me off using it for run of the mill gigs so I always take my ashdown combo, which is a lot lighter, for smallish gigs that need an amp.
I hate the idea of getting a boring lightweight black box type amp and cab and getting rid of the Bassman but I hate the idea of a hernia even more. Personally, I'd go the Sansamp way if I could.

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[quote name='silddx' post='1275652' date='Jun 20 2011, 10:44 AM']Ah, that would be a problem with my solution then :)[/quote]

Indeed.
Although i do have a BDDI, and occasionally do play bigger gigs with a full PA i hate not having my rig behind me so always take it. It may not make a difference out front but i prefer to feel the notes on the back of my legs, and the band do appreciate the fact that they can sometimes feel it in the floor.

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[quote name='gjones' post='1275665' date='Jun 20 2011, 10:55 AM']I hate the idea of getting a boring lightweight black box type amp[/quote]

Yeah.. me too. But I've got this, so IMO it's not an issue...



[quote name='gjones' post='1275665' date='Jun 20 2011, 10:55 AM']...Personally, I'd go the Sansamp way if I could.[/quote]


I hate SansAmps.

Edited by wateroftyne
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[quote name='gjones' post='1275665' date='Jun 20 2011, 10:55 AM']I always take my ashdown combo, which is a lot lighter, for smallish gigs that need an amp.[/quote]

My 500watt rig weighs less than my Ashdown MAG combo.

I personally dont like owning gear if im not using it regularly, but thats just me.

Edited by dave_bass5
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